All Hers
by tielan
Summary: The joy of being the leader of the Atlantis expedition.


**NOTES**: Written for the Weirficathon 2005 and set in Season One. My challenge was to write Weir and Teyla bonding over what it means to be a female leader in Atlantis. I tried my best, but the muse wouldn't co-operate, so this feels a little stilted to me. I might make another assay at it later, but I have another Weirficathon 2005 entry that's still not done.

**All Hers**

Joy.

There were days when she wished her job on someone else.

Today was one of them.

Elizabeth walked along the corridor and practised her breathing in the early afternoon sunshine.

Outside the city, it was a lovely day. The scientists had calculated that this hemisphere of the planet was moving into spring, and the temperatures were swiftly warming up, although the city itself was prone to abrupt weather changes due to its position on the sea.

Shouts and laughter caught her attention, and she glanced out one of the high windows set into the walls. Several storeys below, Elizabeth could see the tiny, pale figures of maybe a dozen of the off-duty personnel frolicking in the sea. A tussle began between two of the men, resulting in one of them being toppled into the sea to the sound of much teasing and laughter. The winner strutted around for all of ten seconds, before a woman crash-tackled him into the water.

Elizabeth smiled, reassured by the antics of the personnel, ordinary, everyday activities, without a care. Unlike her.

She turned away, heading back towards the central city. Her duties called her back to the city, every moment of every day, an effort that seemed unending.

It wasn't easy being the leader of this expedition. Not that she'd expected it to be. Still, she hadn't quite envisioned this: the endless daily grind, wearing her down, bit by bit.

It had never been this difficult - this tiring - before.

Then again, in all her previous situations, no matter how strung out they became, she'd always been able to pick up the phone and call Simon. That wasn't possible here.

She missed his steadiness of character, his calm, dry, humour, the way he listened in silence and the reassuring solidity of his presence. In one thing, Elizabeth had always been sure: Simon would be there for her.

He wasn't there anymore, he was a galaxy - and more - away. And Elizabeth missed him. It didn't mean she cried into her pillow every night, or that she couldn't do her job; it just meant that the going was a little more difficult without him there to anchor her. She would have appreciated someone who understood.

She was passing by one of the empty rooms out in this section of the city when she spotted movement, and turned, wary.

Sunlight gleamed dimly golden through panes of patterned glass. The beams of light silhouetted the slim, lean figure of Teyla Emmagen, moving swiftly and sleekly through her 'exercises' in balanced precision. Elizabeth stopped to watch, once again amazed and appreciative of the more elemental things that Teyla and her people brought to the expedition.

As the young woman turned, swirling her staff through the golden air as though it were molasses, she caught sight of Elizabeth and stopped. Her arms dropped to her side and she gave a quick, brief bow. "Dr. Weir."

"Teyla, I'm sorry to interrupt you. I was just walking past and noticed you." She glanced around the room, curious. Major Sheppard had mentioned his training with Teyla in this staff fighting to her more than once, but she had never known quite where they trained, only that the Major called it 'the gym'. "I thought Major Sheppard was with you this morning."

Teyla scraped long strands of hair from her face. "He was. However, Dr. McKay came around to fetch him for some tests regarding this ATA gene." The young woman spelled out the letters with enunciated care. "He complained of Dr. Beckett's refusal for some time. My understanding was that Dr. Beckett deliberately sought to frustrate Dr. McKay." A wry smile touched Teyla's mouth, matching Elizabeth's amusement at Rodney's paranoia. "If you seek them, they're in the chair room."

Elizabeth shook her head. "No, I'm just...passing through. Escaping my duties," she explained, not sure why she felt it necessary to elaborate.

"Ah." There were a lot of complex harmonics in Teyla's answer. "Major Sheppard spoke of Dr. Kavanaugh's complaints this morning. He termed it 'pig-headed idiocy'."

Major Sheppard would.

So would Elizabeth, although she'd never say such a thing to anyone. Except, perhaps, the Major. Or possibly Rodney if he brought it up first.

"Not the words I would use," she began, not wishing to be seen showing favour - or disfavour - one way or the other.

"But accurate?" Dark eyes studied her with rather more clarity than Elizabeth liked, but she couldn't help the rueful smile. "You are returning to the city now? Will you accept company?"

There was a formality to Teyla's words that made refusal difficult. Elizabeth waited as the young woman collected her bag and packed away her staves. They set off to return to the central city.

As they passed the corridor where Elizabeth had seen the personnel swimming, Teyla's eyes were drawn towards the water. There were more people now - several off-duty military personnel had joined the largely-scientific contingent. "Do all your people know how to swim?"

Elizabeth glanced at the group. By now she was familiar with almost all the expedition members, many of whom she had known during the months at the base in Antarctica. "Not all," she explained. "But the ones in the centre of the sea are mostly the Australians. Their country is an island - a rather large one - and most of their people know how to swim. They're taught from a young age." A glance at the younger woman showed a hint of envy in the otherwise serene gaze. "You don't know how to swim?"

Teyla shook her head. "Not in the ocean." She paused. "They appear to be enjoying themselves."

"They probably are." Elizabeth was no strong swimmer herself, but she wouldn't have minded the chance to relax in a recreational activity of some kind. "It's good for them," she said, half to herself. "A chance to unwind will help them concentrate on their work later." Or so went the theory. She would have to see about setting aside some kind of periodic rest day. Just because Rodney liked to work a seven day week didn't mean that everyone else wanted to as well.

"Before your people came to Athosia, I sometimes felt the need for time away from my people."

Dragging her eyes from the sunshine and laughter beyond the window, Elizabeth caught the dark gaze and returned it as Teyla continued. "I would go out from our encampment, to places where there were no people, and I would remain there for some time, until the evening fell."

When the young woman moved on, Elizabeth hurried to catch up. "Did it help?"

"It allowed me to regain my mental balance." Teyla glanced sideways at Elizabeth. "My people are mostly willing to follow me: they respected my father and have some regard for my gifts."

"But?"

"But some of the older men were less pleased with my actions and decisions. They were accustomed to my father and his ways."

"And your ways weren't his."

"Even had I done things in the ways of my father, I think they would have protested," said Teyla, thoughtfully. "We are not as patriarchal as your people, Dr. Weir, but age has its privileges."

And, doubtless, its ways of making its resentment felt towards a young woman given charge of their people as well. Elizabeth knew the feeling only too well - although the resentments she was experiencing were less to do with age looking down on youth as with ego resenting reprimand - or maybe men taking exception to being under the command of a woman. Sometimes it was hard to tell.

"You lead your people well, Teyla." It couldn't be easy for her, dealing with the mistrust of the majority of the expedition military and the restlessness of her people at the same time. Elizabeth was just as glad it wasn't her. Her own troubles were difficult enough.

"Sometimes I am not so sure of that." Teyla smiled, wry in her deprecation as they moved away from the windows and continued towards the main city. "My people are not difficult to lead. Yours are more...headstrong."

"Pig-headed stubbornness?" Elizabeth offered, privately amused.

Teyla grinned. "I would not describe it so."

As they walked through the city, Elizabeth felt oddly reassured by Teyla's words. The young leader seemed to be making parallels between her own leadership and Elizabeth's - no bad thing, given how the Athosians trusted Teyla.

She just wished that a few of her own people were a little less argumentative.

"Are there any activities you enjoy that do not relate to the running of the city?"

"A few." Hiking. Walking the dog. Sitting in the sun with a book while Simon tinkered with his car. "Walking helps."

"Yet you keep your earpiece with you."

"I..." Elizabeth paused. She needed to be available at all times in case a crisis happened. Didn't she?

Teyla was silent as they kept walking. There were more people in this section of the city, and they greeted both women with nods and smiles.

"I would be glad to show you exercises for the relaxation of your body and mind," offered the other woman as they reached a junction and stepped aside so several military personnel could wheel a crate of supplies past them.

"Oh, I couldn't do what Major Sheppard does." Keeping herself fit and healthy was one thing, but fighting fit was another.

"That is a different discipline. This would be stretching and breathing, not combat technique. I do not know if they would help you, but you are welcome if you wish it."

She appreciated the offer and said as much. "Maybe I'll take you up on it sometime."

"If there is anything I can do to help...?"

The offer was still hanging in the air as the familiar voice of Rodney McKay came into earshot. True to form, he sounded very irritable. "...can't expect to always have the 'jumpers available, you know."

"Get Beckett to do it. Or one of the other ATA people - people who've had the ATA gene therapy thing. Whatever." Sheppard was grumbling as the two men turned the corner.

Wonderful. Just what she needed.

Elizabeth turned to Teyla and gestured at the oncoming duo. "I don't suppose you'd care to--?"

Teyla shook her head, smiling. "This is all yours."

She sighed as the men spotted her and hastened towards her, each man hoping she'd take their side.

All hers.

Joy.

- **fin** -

**FEEDBACK**: Always welcome.


End file.
